Combination harness protector and carpet

ABSTRACT

A floor covering product, process, and product by process provides protection for an electrical wiring harness of a motor vehicle routed through a passenger compartment on top of an interior surface of a contoured floor pan area with an adjacent kick plate body area portion extending generally upwardly along at least a portion of the interior contoured floor pan area. An aesthetic floor covering material is adapted to be sufficiently coextensive with the contoured floor pan area to be covered, and a contoured reinforcement member is associated with a portion of the aesthetic floor covering material, such that after installation, the contoured reinforcement member extends generally upwardly from the exposed floor pan area and extends generally toward the adjacent kick plate body area to define a crush resistant open conduit for receiving an electrical wire harness or duct work to be routed therethrough.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a floor covering product for protectingan electrical wiring harness of a vehicle routed through an interiorcompartment on top of an interior surface of a contoured floor pan areawith an adjacent sill or kick plate body area portion extendinggenerally upwardly along at least a portion of the interior contouredfloor pan area, and more particularly to a non-planar reinforcementmember associated with the floor covering in an area adjacent atransition from the interior contoured floor pan area and the kick platebody area portion to define an open conduit for the electrical wiringharness to routed therethrough without requiring a recess to be formedin the floor pan area.

BACKGROUND

Wiring harnesses typically run through a vehicle in order to connectelectrical devices to the electrical system of the vehicle. Wiringharnesses typically are run in a recess formed below the level of thefloor pan area in a passenger compartment until a cross member supportis encountered. In order to traverse a cross member support in the floorpan area, a hollow conduit is typically provided to protect the wiringharness from loads and crushing. The hollow conduit, and wiring harnesspassing therethrough, is typically covered with an anesthetic interiorcovering, such as carpet, that can include a foam layer on the bottomsurface of the carpet. If a hollow conduit is not provided, the wiringharness can be damaged by repeated abrasion with the overlying carpet,and crushing loads. To an occupant of the vehicle, the carpet may feelcrushable or lumpy, or appear not firmly fitted to the floor in theabsence of a hollow conduit for the wiring harness. Conduits typicallyare sized to be larger than the largest wiring harness to be run throughthe hollow conduit for the vehicle and particular accessory optionsselected. Therefore, the typical conduit for a wiring harness is sizedfor a fully-loaded vehicle, while a base model vehicle may only have arelatively smaller size harness dimension. To protect the wiring harnessand provide a firm fit for the overlying carpet, a plastic hollowconduit or planar cover for a recess in the floor pan area is typicallyused in current vehicles. Various wiring harness protectorconfigurations can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,439,725; U.S. Pat. No.5,876,090; U.S. Pat. No. 5,965,951; U.S. Pat. No. 6,092,854; U.S. Pat.No. 6,392,147; U.S. Pat. No. 6,491,999; and U.S. Patent PublicationApplication No. US 2003/0102690.

SUMMARY

A floor covering assembly or product for protecting an electrical wiringharness of a vehicle routed through an interior compartment on top of aninterior surface of a contoured floor pan area with an adjacent sill orkick plate body area portion extending generally upwardly along at leasta portion of the exterior contoured floor pan area can include a floorcovering made of material being sufficiently flexible to be coextensivewith the interior contoured floor pan area and an adjacent kick platebody portion area to be covered, and a non-planar reinforcement membermade of material being sufficiently stiff to be self supporting andnon-crushable under normal loads located at a position spaced from theinterior contoured floor pan area and a kick plate body area portion.The reinforcement member can be associated with the floor covering in anarea adjacent a transition from the interior contoured floor pan areaand the kick plate body area portion to define an open conduit for theelectrical wiring harness to be routed therethrough.

A floor covering product installable for covering at least a portion ofa contoured floor pan area of a vehicle for routing an electrical wireharness for a vehicle can include aesthetic material adapted to besufficiently coextensive with the contoured floor pan area to becovered, and a contoured reinforcement member having a first sideassociated with a portion of the aesthetic material, such that afterinstallation the contoured reinforcement member extends generallyupwardly from the exposed floor pan area and extends generally towardthe adjacent kick plate body area to define a crush resistant openconduit for receiving an electrical wire harness to be routedtherethrough.

A process for forming a floor covering product for protecting anelectrical wiring harness for a motor vehicle routed through a passengercompartment on top of an interior surface of a contoured floor pan areawith an adjacent kick plate body area portion extending generallyupwardly along at least a portion of the interior contoured floor panarea can include preforming a reinforcement member to a predeterminedcontoured shape, inserting the contoured preformed reinforcement memberinto a mold, inserting a floor covering material into the mold with abacking material layer contacting the preformed reinforcement member,heating the mold to form the floor covering material into apredetermined contoured shape, and associating the contoured, preformedreinforcement member to the backing material of the floor covering, suchthat when installed the contoured reinforcement member extends generallyupwardly from the exposed floor pan area and extends generally towardthe adjacent kick plate body area to define a crush resistant openconduit for receiving an electrical wire harness to be wiredtherethrough.

Other applications of the present invention will become apparent tothose skilled in the art when the following description of the best modecontemplated for practicing the invention is read in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The description herein makes reference to the accompanying drawingswherein like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout theseveral views, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a motor vehicle showing an interiorfloor pan having a floor covering assembly in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an underside of the interior floor pan,with the interior floor pan shown in phantom in order to facilitateillustration of the wiring harness routing through the passengercompartment of the vehicle, and the underside of the floor coveringassembly including a non-planar reinforcement member;

FIG. 3 is a perspective exploded view of a floor covering assembly withthe non-planar reinforcement member spaced from its normal positionassociated with the floor covering; and

FIG. 4 is a simplified cross-sectional view taken as shown in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to FIGS. 1-4, a floor covering assembly or product 10 isillustrated for protecting an electrical wiring harness 12 of a motorvehicle 14 routed through an interior space 16, such as a trunk or apassenger compartment, on top of an interior surface 18 of a contouredfloor sheet metal or pan area 20 with an adjacent sill sheet metal orkick plate body area portion 22 extending generally upwardly along atleast a portion of the interior contoured floor pan area 20. No specialrecess is required to be designed into the floor sheet metal for use asan electrical wiring harness routing path through the interior space 16,such as a trunk or passenger compartment. The floor covering product 10can include a floor covering 24 made of a material being sufficientlyflexible to be coextensive with the interior contoured floor pan area 20and the adjacent kick plate body area portion 22 to be covered, and anon-planar reinforcement member 26 made of a material being sufficientlystiff to be self supporting and non-crushable under normal loads can belocated at a position spaced from the interior contoured floor pan area20 and the kick plate body area portion 22. The reinforcement member 26is associated with the floor covering 24 in an area adjacent atransition from the interior contoured floor pan area 20 and the kickplate body area portion 22 to define an open conduit 28 for theelectrical wiring harness 12 to be routed therethrough.

A padding material 30 can have a first side 32 engageable with the floorcovering 24 and can be less than coextensive with the floor covering 24,such that the padding material 30 defines a portion of the crushresistant open conduit 28 existing between an edge of the paddingmaterial 30, the exposed floor pan area 20, and the adjacent kick platebody area portion 22 for receiving an electrical wiring harness 12 to berouted therethrough. The padding material is not coextensive withreinforcement member 26, and can overlap with a portion or none of thearea of the reinforcement member 26. The padding material is locatedbetween the floor pan area 22 and the floor covering 24, and between nomore than a portion of the reinforcement member 26 and the floor pan 22.

The reinforcement member 26 can be formed of an ethylene-vinyl-acetate(EVA) material. The reinforcement member 26 can have a generallyL-shaped cross-section. The reinforcement member 26 can be associatedwith the floor covering 24 by a layer 34, such as an adhesive layer or aheat bonded layer.

The reinforcement member 26 performs the conduit function by beingshaped to define an open hollow conduit in combination with the floorpan area 20 and adjacent kick plate body area 22, and optionally thepadding material 30. By eliminating a separately installed hollowconduit and by eliminating the need for a special recess to be formed inthe floor sheet metal, the assembly process is streamlined,manufacturing costs are reduced, and a part is eliminated.

To make the floor covering 24, a reinforcement member 26 is preformedand laid into a portion of a mold. The floor covering 24 is placed ontop of the reinforcement member 26 and heated. The heat and moldpressure forms the floor covering 24 into the desired shape and bondsthe reinforcement member 26 to the backing material of the floorcovering 24. Alternatively, the reinforcement member 26 can beadhesively secured to the backing material of the floor covering 24after the floor covering 24 has been formed to the desired shape. Itshould be recognized that the conduit formed by the combination of thereinforcement member 26, floor plan area 20, and adjacent kick platebody area 22 can be used to route other things in addition to electricalwiring harnesses, such as duct work or the like. The carpet or aestheticmaterial can include a backing and pile, and other materials like vinyl,or plastic can be used individually, or in any combination. The color ofmaterials can be selected to complement, match, or harmonize with otherinterior material colors.

A combination carpet and wire harness protector includes a floorcovering 24 and a stiff reinforcement member 26 bonded onto a backingmaterial of the floor covering 24 in an area in which a wiring harness12 requires protection. The conventional approach uses a separateharness protector to shield and protect the wiring harness, and carpetsits on top of the separate harness protector, which clips into thefloor sheet metal or sill sheet metal. An alternative conventionalapproach uses a recess formed in the floor sheet metal with a planarshield for the recess attached to a side of the padding opposite fromthe carpet.

In contrast, an embodiment of a combination carpet and wire harnessprotector as illustrated in FIGS. 1-4 includes a stiff non-planar orcontoured reinforcement member 26 bonded onto the floor covering 24 toprotect the wiring harness 12. The wiring harness 12 clips to the floorsheet metal 20 or sill sheet metal 22, as conventional in areas notrequiring protection. The combination of a floor covering 24 andreinforcement member 26 define a single part acting as a wire harnessprotector when assembled in combination with the floor sheet metal 20and kick plate sill sheet metal 22. The combination of floor covering 24and reinforcement member 26 uses less mass than having a separate wireharness protector. The combination floor covering 24 and reinforcementmember 26 save labor costs required to install a separate wire harnessprotector. The combination floor covering 24 and reinforcement member 26allows for a more flexible wire harness, which is easier to install.When using a separate wiring harness protector, a gap is requiredbetween the protector and the carpet for installation purposes, whichcan cause a poor fit and finish when applying pressure to the floorcovering. The combination floor covering 24 and reinforcement member 26provides a stiffer construction with better fit and finishcharacteristics, since the carpet is reinforced, allowing nodeformation.

A floor covering product 10 installable for covering at least a portionof a contoured floor pan area 20 of a vehicle 14 for routing anelectrical wire harness 12 for a vehicle 14 can include an aestheticmaterial 24 adapted to be sufficiently coextensive with the contouredfloor pan area 20 to be covered, and a contoured reinforcement member 26having a first side 36 associated with a portion of the aestheticmaterial 24. After installation, the contoured reinforcement member 26extends generally upwardly from the floor sheet metal or exposed floorpan area 20 and extends generally toward the adjacent sill sheet metalor kick plate body area 22 to define a crush resistant open conduit 28for receiving an electrical wire harness 12 to be routed therethrough.

A padding material 30 having a first side 32 engageable with theaesthetic material 24 can be less than coextensive with the aestheticmaterial 24, such that the padding material 30 defines a portion of thecrush resistant open conduit 28 existing between an edge 38 of thepadding material 30, the exposed floor pan area 20 and the adjacent kickplate body area 22 for receiving the electrical wire harness 12 to berouted therethrough. The reinforcement member 26 can be formed ofethylene-vinyl-acetate (EVA) material. The reinforcement member 26 canhave a generally L-shaped cross-section. The reinforcement member 26 canbe associated with the aesthetic material 24 by a layer 34, such as anadhesive layer or a heat bonded layer.

A process for forming a floor covering product 10 for protecting anelectrical wiring harness 12 of a motor vehicle 14 routed through apassenger compartment 16 on top of an interior surface 18 of a contouredfloor sheet metal or floor pan area 20 with an adjacent sill sheet metalor kick plate body area portion 22 extending generally upwardly along atleast a portion of the interior contoured floor pan 20 can includepreforming a reinforcement member 26 to a predetermined contoured shape,inserting the contoured preformed reinforcement member 26 into a mold,inserting a floor covering material 24 into the mold with a backingmaterial layer 40 contacting the preformed reinforcement member 26, andheating the mold to form the floor covering material 24 into apredetermined contoured shape. The contoured preformed reinforcementmember 26 is associated with the backing material 40 of the floorcovering 24 such that when installed the contoured reinforcement member26 extends generally upwardly from the exposed floor pan area 20 andextends generally toward the adjacent kick plate body area 22 to definea crush resistant open conduit 28 for receiving an electrical wireharness 12 to be routed therethrough.

The process can include engaging a padding material 30 having a firstside 32 with the floor covering 24. The padding material 30 can be lessthan coextensive with the floor covering 24, such that the paddingmaterial 30 can define a portion of the crush resistant open conduit 28existing between an edge 38 of the padding material 30, the exposedfloor pan area 20, and the adjacent kick plate body area 22 forreceiving an electrical wire harness 12 to be routed therethrough. Theprocess can include forming the reinforcement member 26 ofethylene-vinyl-acetate (EVA). The reinforcement member can be formed bythe process with a generally L-shaped cross-section. The reinforcementmember 26 can be associated with the floor covering 24 by a layer 34,such as an adhesive layer or a heat bonded layer. The process of heatingthe mold to form the floor covering 24 can simultaneously associate thepreformed reinforcement member 26 to the floor covering 24 with a heatbonded layer 34.

A floor covering product or assembly 10 made by the process can beinstalled for covering at least a portion of a contoured floor pan area20 of a vehicle 14 for routing an electrical wire harness 12 for thevehicle 14. The assembly can include an aesthetic material 24 adapted tobe sufficiently coextensive with the contoured floor pan area 20 to becovered, and a contoured reinforcement member 26 having a first side 36associated with a portion of the aesthetic material 24, such that afterinstallation the contoured reinforcement member extends generallyupwardly from the exposed floor pan area 20 and extends inwardly towardthe adjacent kick plate body area 22 to define a crush resistant openconduit 28 for receiving an electrical wire harness 12 to be routedtherethrough.

While the invention has been described in connection with what ispresently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment,it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to thedisclosed embodiments but, on the contrary, is intended to cover variousmodifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit andscope of the appended claims, which scope is to be accorded the broadestinterpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalentstructures as is permitted under the law.

1. A floor covering product for protecting an electrical wiring harnessof a vehicle routed through an interior compartment on top of aninterior surface of a contoured floor pan area with an adjacent sillportion extending generally upwardly along at least a portion of-theinterior contoured floor pan area comprising: a floor covering made ofmaterial being sufficiently flexible to be coextensive with the interiorcontoured floor pan area and an adjacent sill portion to be covered; anda non-planar reinforcement member made of material being sufficientstiff to be self supporting and non-crushable under normal loads at alocation spaced from the interior contoured floor pan area and the sillportion, the reinforcement member associated with the floor covering inan area adjacent a transition from the interior contoured floor pan areaand the sill portion to define an open conduit for the electrical wiringharness to be routed therethrough.
 2. The floor covering product ofclaim 1 further comprising: a padding material having a first sideengageable with the floor covering and being less than coextensive withthe floor covering, such that the padding material- defines a portion ofthe crush resistant open conduit existing between an edge of the paddingmaterial,- the exposed floor pan area, and the adjacent sill portion forreceiving an electrical wiring harness to be routed therethrough.
 3. Thefloor covering product of claim 1, wherein the reinforcement member isformed of ethylene-vinyl-acetate (EVA).
 4. The floor covering product ofclaim 1, wherein the reinforcement member has a generally L-shapedcross-section.
 5. The floor covering product of claim 1, wherein thereinforcement member is associated with the floor covering by anadhesive layer.
 6. The floor covering product of claim 1, wherein thereinforcement member is associated with the floor covering by a heatbonded layer.
 7. A floor covering product installable for covering atleast a portion of a contoured floor pan area of a vehicle for routingan electrical wire harness for a vehicle, the assembly comprising: anaesthetic material adapted to be sufficiently coextensive with thecontoured floor pan area to be covered; and a contoured reinforcementmember having a first side associated with a portion of the aestheticmaterial, such that after installation the contoured reinforcementmember extends generally upwardly from the exposed floor pan area andextends generally toward the adjacent kick plate body area to define acrush resistant open conduit for receiving an electrical wire harness tobe routed therethrough.
 8. The floor covering product of claim 7 furthercomprising: a padding material having a first side engageable with theaesthetic material and being less than coextensive with the aestheticmaterial, such that the padding material defines a portion of the crushresistant open conduit existing between an edge of the padding material,the exposed floor pan area, and the adjacent kick plate body area forreceiving an electrical wire harness to be routed therethrough.
 9. Thefloor covering product of claim 7, wherein the reinforcement member isformed of ethylene-vinyl-acetate (EVA).
 10. The floor covering productof claim 7, wherein the reinforcement member has a generally L-shapedcross-section.
 11. The floor covering product of claim 7, wherein thereinforcement member is associated with the aesthetic material by anadhesive layer.
 12. The floor covering product of claim 7, wherein thereinforcement member is associated with the aesthetic material by a heatbonded layer.
 13. A process for forming a floor covering product forprotecting an electrical wiring harness, of a motor vehicle routedthrough a passenger compartment on top of an interior surface of acontoured floor pan area with an adjacent kick plate body area portionextending generally upwardly along at least a portion of the interiorcontoured floor pan area comprising: preforming a reinforcement memberto a predetermined contoured shape; inserting the contoured preformedreinforcement member into a mold; inserting a floor covering materialinto the mold with a backing material layer contacting the preformedreinforcement member; heating the mold to form the floor coveringmaterial into a predetermined contoured shape; and associating thecontoured, preformed reinforcement member to the backing, material ofthe floor covering, such that when installed the contoured reinforcementmember extends generally upwardly from the exposed floor pan area andextends generally toward the adjacent kick plate body area to define acrush resistant open conduit for receiving an electrical wiring harnessto be routed therethrough.
 14. The process of claim 13 furthercomprising: engaging a padding material having a first side with thefloor covering, the padding material being less than coextensive withthe floor covering, such that the padding material defines a portion ofthe crush resistant open conduit existing between an edge of the paddingmaterial, the exposed floor pan area, and the adjacent kick plate bodyarea for receiving an electrical wiring harness to be routedtherethrough.
 15. The process of claim 13 further comprising: formingthe reinforcement member of ethylene-vinyl-acetate (EVA).
 16. Theprocess of claim 13 further comprising: forming the reinforcement memberwith a generally L-shaped cross-section.
 17. The process of claim 13,wherein the reinforcement member is associated with the floor coveringby an adhesive layer.
 18. The process of claim 13, wherein thereinforcement member is associated with the floor covering by a heatbonded layer.
 19. The process of claim 13, wherein heating the mold toform the floor covering simultaneously associates the preformedreinforcement member to the floor covering with a heat bonded layer. 20.A floor covering product made by the process of claim 13, andinstallable for covering at least a portion of a contoured floor panarea of a vehicle for routing an electrical wire harness for a vehicle,the assembly comprising: an aesthetic material adapted to besufficiently coextensive with the contoured floor pan area to becovered; and a contoured reinforcement member having a first sideassociated with a portion of the aesthetic material, such that afterinstallation the contoured reinforcement member extends generallyupwardly from the exposed floor pan area and extends generally towardthe adjacent kick plate body area to define a crush resistant openconduit for receiving an electrical wire harness to be routedtherethrough.
 21. The floor covering product of claim 1, wherein thefloor covering includes an aesthetic material coextensive with thecontoured floor pan area; and wherein the non-planar reinforcementmember is contoured with a first side associated with a portion of theaesthetic material and configured so that the open conduit is crushresistant.